On Wednesday, after picking the kids up from school, Helen had a flat tire. She pulled into a grocery store parking lot and called me to come help her. On her mini-van the spare tire is under the car and very difficult to get out. Fortunately a cyclist named Neal stopped to help her. He helped get the spare out and changed the tire. Helen noticed that Neal had an Obama button and an Obama hat.
The spare hadn't been used, or even looked at, during the entire time we've had the car. Not surprisingly the spare was almost flat. Another lucky break happened when a man in a pickup stopped to help. The driver, Mike, had an electric pump which he used to inflate the spare. Coincidentally Mike was a cyclist and an Obama supporter too. He had a bike in the back of his pickup and an Obama bumper sticker.
By the time I got there, the tire had been changed and inflated and the good Samaritans had ridden off into the sunset like the Lone Ranger.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Goodbye gall bladder
Helen saw the specialist yesterday and he scheduled her for surgery today. Fortunately, gall bladder removal is an out-patient procedure so she is already back home. Rachel was a little concerned about the surgery and gave Helen some tips about what to expect. Rachel wanted to share her experience from getting her tonsils taken out this summer. Both the kids are happy now that Helen is done with the surgery and is safe at home.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Six Flags
On Sunday, we went to Six Flags for the AB family day. We had a great time. We got there just before it opened at 10. One of A.J.'s classmates was having a birthday party so Helen and A.J. left for that and came back later. Rachel and I stayed for the whole day. She rode on a real roller coaster for the first time: the new Evel Knievel ride. It's been a long time since I've been on a real roller coaster so I was a little bit nervous. The ride was a lot of fun and Rachel really enjoyed it. She did not feel the need to ride any other roller coasters. We later met up with Helen and A.J. and stay at the park until it closed at 6.
After being at the park all day, we were all very tired. Helen seem more tired than the rest of us. She wasn't feeling any better the next day and her stomach was hurting. The pain got worse and she ended up going to the emergency room at midnight. The doctor there told her that she had gall bladder problems and was considering removing it that night. After doing an ultrasound, he decided that it did not need to be done immediately and told her to see her doctor today.
Of course her doctor just referred her to a specialist that she will see tomorrow. We are expecting that she will need her gall bladder removed since she has a family history of this problem.
After being at the park all day, we were all very tired. Helen seem more tired than the rest of us. She wasn't feeling any better the next day and her stomach was hurting. The pain got worse and she ended up going to the emergency room at midnight. The doctor there told her that she had gall bladder problems and was considering removing it that night. After doing an ultrasound, he decided that it did not need to be done immediately and told her to see her doctor today.
Of course her doctor just referred her to a specialist that she will see tomorrow. We are expecting that she will need her gall bladder removed since she has a family history of this problem.
Monday, September 8, 2008
I am legend
This past weekend was the MS-150. Thank you to everyone who donated.
I was a little worried about doing the century route (100 miles) on both days. I hadn't done any long rides to get ready. The longest ride I have done all year has been one of the Maplewood Bicycle Tuesday night rides and that was only twenty miles. Even if you count my commute that was less than forty miles for the day.
Since Helen wasn't going with me, I needed to rent a car. Car rental companies always seem to "forget" to enter the right code and try to charge you more than the reservation price. This has happened to me more than once and with more than one car rental company. They did fix the problem when I reminded them about it.
I picked up the car Friday morning and loaded it up with everything that I would need. Since I was driving, I decided to take the big (4-person) tent rather than the small tent that I used last year. After work, I drove to Columbia. It's only a two hour drive, so I was able to get there and get my tent set up before dark. After that, I had something to eat and turned in fairly early.
Saturday morning was a little chilly and the grass was very wet from dew. I ate breakfast, got my bike out of the car, and changed clothes in time for the 7:00 start. It had warmed up enough by this point that I didn't need a jacket. I didn't want to wear a jacket for 30 minutes and then carry it for the rest of the day.
The day continued to be damp and overcast. It probably didn't get much over 70 degrees. The cool weather is actually great for cycling. This year the first day had the flat route and the second day had the hilly one. There are still some hills on the flat route, though.
Some of the other riders remembered my ride from last year. That was when I rode to and from Columbia and ended up riding 520 miles in four days. Most of the people though it was pretty crazy. It was neat to be able to impress people like that. Of course I'm nowhere close to be able to do that this year.
I finished Saturday's ride feeling good, but tired. I hung out in the Mich Ultra tent until we took our group picture. After showering and eating dinner I fell asleep in my tent for about half an hour. I was too tired too do much more than lay in my tent and read. It rained for short period a few times that evening. It actually kind of nice to lay in a tent and listen to rain that you don't have to go out in. I was toying with the possibility of not riding at all on Sunday.
I was feel better on Sunday morning. I knew that I would be able to ride at least 75 miles. The century route did not split from the 75 mile route until about the 50 mile mark. This meant that I would be able to ride the first 50 miles and then decide whether I wanted to do 25 more or 50 more. I eventually decided that I had to at least try the 100 miles. If I did the 75 and still felt good I would be kicking myself for not doing the century.
There are good and bad things about large rides like the MS-150. Having so many cyclist on the road sometimes means that you get stuck behind a large clump of people. Of course having that many people means that there are always people to talk to. It also helps to keep my motivation up if there are people watching, or if there are people ahead of me that I can try to catch up to.
The century route has fewer people on it. There was one point where I went 20 minutes without seeing any other riders. This gets a little lonely but at least there were plenty of signs to reassure me that I wasn't lost.
I ended up riding the last twenty miles or so with a rider named John who is a student at Mizzou. He was doing the century route both days as well and these were his first and second centuries. He was a strong rider and wasn't having any troubles. He was a little concerned about the last six miles because everyone talks about the hills. I told him not to worry. A lot of people end up getting off there bikes and walking up the last hill but I knew that he wouldn't have any problems. The best thing about the last hill is that it is the last hill. After you get to the top you are practically done.
After I finished, I ate, showered and packed up the tent. After a couple hours of driving I was home in time to tuck the kids into bed. I was tired, but I was also proud that I was able to do what I set out to do. I may not be in as good of shape as I was last year but I still have the mental toughness. And the mental aspects of long distance riding are as important as the physical ones.
I was a little worried about doing the century route (100 miles) on both days. I hadn't done any long rides to get ready. The longest ride I have done all year has been one of the Maplewood Bicycle Tuesday night rides and that was only twenty miles. Even if you count my commute that was less than forty miles for the day.
Since Helen wasn't going with me, I needed to rent a car. Car rental companies always seem to "forget" to enter the right code and try to charge you more than the reservation price. This has happened to me more than once and with more than one car rental company. They did fix the problem when I reminded them about it.
I picked up the car Friday morning and loaded it up with everything that I would need. Since I was driving, I decided to take the big (4-person) tent rather than the small tent that I used last year. After work, I drove to Columbia. It's only a two hour drive, so I was able to get there and get my tent set up before dark. After that, I had something to eat and turned in fairly early.
Saturday morning was a little chilly and the grass was very wet from dew. I ate breakfast, got my bike out of the car, and changed clothes in time for the 7:00 start. It had warmed up enough by this point that I didn't need a jacket. I didn't want to wear a jacket for 30 minutes and then carry it for the rest of the day.
The day continued to be damp and overcast. It probably didn't get much over 70 degrees. The cool weather is actually great for cycling. This year the first day had the flat route and the second day had the hilly one. There are still some hills on the flat route, though.
Some of the other riders remembered my ride from last year. That was when I rode to and from Columbia and ended up riding 520 miles in four days. Most of the people though it was pretty crazy. It was neat to be able to impress people like that. Of course I'm nowhere close to be able to do that this year.
I finished Saturday's ride feeling good, but tired. I hung out in the Mich Ultra tent until we took our group picture. After showering and eating dinner I fell asleep in my tent for about half an hour. I was too tired too do much more than lay in my tent and read. It rained for short period a few times that evening. It actually kind of nice to lay in a tent and listen to rain that you don't have to go out in. I was toying with the possibility of not riding at all on Sunday.
I was feel better on Sunday morning. I knew that I would be able to ride at least 75 miles. The century route did not split from the 75 mile route until about the 50 mile mark. This meant that I would be able to ride the first 50 miles and then decide whether I wanted to do 25 more or 50 more. I eventually decided that I had to at least try the 100 miles. If I did the 75 and still felt good I would be kicking myself for not doing the century.
There are good and bad things about large rides like the MS-150. Having so many cyclist on the road sometimes means that you get stuck behind a large clump of people. Of course having that many people means that there are always people to talk to. It also helps to keep my motivation up if there are people watching, or if there are people ahead of me that I can try to catch up to.
The century route has fewer people on it. There was one point where I went 20 minutes without seeing any other riders. This gets a little lonely but at least there were plenty of signs to reassure me that I wasn't lost.
I ended up riding the last twenty miles or so with a rider named John who is a student at Mizzou. He was doing the century route both days as well and these were his first and second centuries. He was a strong rider and wasn't having any troubles. He was a little concerned about the last six miles because everyone talks about the hills. I told him not to worry. A lot of people end up getting off there bikes and walking up the last hill but I knew that he wouldn't have any problems. The best thing about the last hill is that it is the last hill. After you get to the top you are practically done.
After I finished, I ate, showered and packed up the tent. After a couple hours of driving I was home in time to tuck the kids into bed. I was tired, but I was also proud that I was able to do what I set out to do. I may not be in as good of shape as I was last year but I still have the mental toughness. And the mental aspects of long distance riding are as important as the physical ones.
Hand surgery update
I had my hand surgery as scheduled and every thing went fine. I was allowed to take the bandages off and start riding again on Labor Day.
Monday, August 25, 2008
The flats just keep on coming
On Saturday, I started to fix the flats that I got on Thursday. The front tube had three holes in it so I didn't bother patching it. I did patch the back tube and reinstalled it. Then I went to Maplewood bicycle to buy some replacement tubes. They also gave my some zip ties and help me mount the frame pump to my bike. I had been meaning to do this for a while.
One the way back, I hit a rock and the front tire had a blowout. This was annoying, but at least I had plenty of spare tubes with me. I replaced the tube and as I was pumping it up it blew out again. The blowout was in the same location too. At this point I need something was wrong. I checked to see if there was a spoke poke through the wheel that was causing the problem but didn't find anything. I decide to walk the bike back to Maplewood Bicycle and have them check it out.
As I was telling the story the Greg. He was looking at the problem wheel. He almost immediately noticed a cut in the side of the tire. This is what was causing the blowouts. I'm guessing that this happened at the same time that I got the flats on Thursday. He sold me a new tire, installed it, and I was on my way.
I had no problems with my commute on Monday. On my way home, I did talk to someone else that was bike commuting for the first time. He asked if I had any tips. I told him to watch out for left turning cars. I also should have suggested that he get rid of the headphones. I never listen to music while riding because I want to be able to hear what's going on around me.
One the way back, I hit a rock and the front tire had a blowout. This was annoying, but at least I had plenty of spare tubes with me. I replaced the tube and as I was pumping it up it blew out again. The blowout was in the same location too. At this point I need something was wrong. I checked to see if there was a spoke poke through the wheel that was causing the problem but didn't find anything. I decide to walk the bike back to Maplewood Bicycle and have them check it out.
As I was telling the story the Greg. He was looking at the problem wheel. He almost immediately noticed a cut in the side of the tire. This is what was causing the blowouts. I'm guessing that this happened at the same time that I got the flats on Thursday. He sold me a new tire, installed it, and I was on my way.
I had no problems with my commute on Monday. On my way home, I did talk to someone else that was bike commuting for the first time. He asked if I had any tips. I told him to watch out for left turning cars. I also should have suggested that he get rid of the headphones. I never listen to music while riding because I want to be able to hear what's going on around me.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Helen to the rescue
I was watching the weather this afternoon at work. The forecast had called for scattered thundershowers and I was hoping to dodge them. I had avoided the rain in the morning and I was hoping my luck would hold. When I left work it looked like the worst of it had passed.
I made it about half way home when I suddenly had a flat. I pulled off the road and saw that the front tire was entirely flat. I called Helen to let her know that I would be a little late. While I was changing the tire it starting raining. Not too bad but it was more than a drizzle. After I removed the piece of glass from the front tire and replaced the tube I was ready to go, or so I thought. Just as I was about to get started, I noticed that the back tire was flat too. And then it started raining hard.
I was only carrying one spare tube. I do carry a patch kit so I could have tried to patch one of the punctured tubes, but this would have been difficult to do in the wet. I decided that discretion was the better part of valor and called Helen to come pick me up. I will probably have Helen drive me to work tomorrow. I don't want to mess with patching the tube tonight.
I made it about half way home when I suddenly had a flat. I pulled off the road and saw that the front tire was entirely flat. I called Helen to let her know that I would be a little late. While I was changing the tire it starting raining. Not too bad but it was more than a drizzle. After I removed the piece of glass from the front tire and replaced the tube I was ready to go, or so I thought. Just as I was about to get started, I noticed that the back tire was flat too. And then it started raining hard.
I was only carrying one spare tube. I do carry a patch kit so I could have tried to patch one of the punctured tubes, but this would have been difficult to do in the wet. I decided that discretion was the better part of valor and called Helen to come pick me up. I will probably have Helen drive me to work tomorrow. I don't want to mess with patching the tube tonight.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
